Connor Brickley | Winger | #86

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The Panthers announced they have signed Connor Brickley to a one-year, two-way contract.

Brickley, 25, recorded 26 points (15-11-26) in 69 games with the Charlotte Checkers (AHL). The 6-foot, 203-pound native of Everett, Mass., has recorded five points (1-4-5) in 23 NHL games, all with Florida (2015-16). He was originally selected by Florida in the second round (50th overall) of the 2010 NHL Draft. Jul 1 - 6:43 PM

The 2017 fifth-round selection that the Vegas Golden Knights got from the Carolina Hurricanes originally belonged to the Boston Bruins.

Carolina gave Vegas the pick to entice the Golden Knights to take Connor Brickley in the expansion draft. The fifth-round pick the Hurricanes surrendered was originally acquired by Carolina as part of the John-Michael Liles trade on Feb. 29, 2016. Jun 22 - 4:15 AM

The Vegas Golden Knights have selected Connor Brickley from the Carolina Hurricanes in the expansion draft.

The Hurricanes also surrendered a 2017 fifth round pick to Vegas in order to get them to select Brickley over some of the more desirable options on their unprotected list. He had 26 points and 57 penalty minutes in 69 AHL contests last season. The 25-year-old forward also had a goal and five points in 23 games with the Florida Panters during the 2015-16 campaign. Jun 21 - 9:05 PM

The Hurricanes farm club is up 2-1 in the best of five series and have a chance to move on to the next round with a victory on Tuesday. Brickley was a second round pick of the Florida Panthers in 2010 and was dealt to Carolina on October 11 in exchange for Brody Sutter. He had only 15 goals and 26 points in 69 games this season but had four game winners in March. Apr 24 - 8:07 AM

Depth Charts

Aleksander Barkov is disappointed that Jaromir Jagr won't be back with the Panthers this season.

"I would be lying if I say no because he helped me so much and probably I would never be in the same situation without him," Barkov said. "When he came in, I took my game to another level and for sure everybody else on the team did too. He just helped so much everybody on the team and is one of the most important guys in my career." Barkov, Jagr and Jonathan Huberdeau was a successful combination for the Panthers, but injuries got in the way last year. He wants to see Jagr get a chance to continue playing somewhere even if it isn't in the NHL. Barkov and Huberdeau are expected to skated alongside Evgeny Dadonov in 2017-18.

Vincent Trocheck found the back of the net in Thursday's 6-3 loss to the St. Louis Blues.

The goal put an end to his 17-game goalless drought. Trocheck tied the game at one at the 6:41 mark of the second frame, but it was all downhill from there for the Panthers. Trocheck finished the game with a minus-2 rating, two penalty minutes and five shots on goal in 20:26 of ice time. Trocheck has 23 goals and 54 points in 80 games.

Derek MacKenzie is excited to have Bob Boughner as the new head coach of the Panthers.

"He's a player's coach, an all-in kind of guy," said Florida's captain. "He can relate to you. He's a guy you have a great relationship with, but he's not afraid to put his foot down. When he came to you and needed something from you, you wanted to do it." MacKenzie has played for Boughner before when he was an assistant for Columbus in 2010.

Jonathan Huberdeau scored two goals in a 3-0 win against Buffalo on Saturday.

Huberdeau has 10 goals and 26 points in 30 games this season. Nick Bjugstad netted his ninth goal of the season, which also proved to be the game-winner. Jaromir Jagr registered two assists, giving him 46 points in 81 games.

He started Tuesday's game on a line with Jaromir Jagr and Nick Bjugstad, but ended up logging just 10:13 of ice time versus Ottawa. McCann has one goal and six assists in 29 games with the Panthers this season.

Denis Malgin is more confident heading into his second season with the Panthers.

Malgin skated in 47 games with Florida last year and he chipped in 10 points. He also registered 12 points over 15 outings with Springfield of the AHL. "It was a good lesson for me," he said. "It was a good experience in the AHL to play there a lot of minutes. Then I got the call-up, and it was amazing. I came again on the team and I think I played very well then again. I feel confidence now. I have more confidence than last year. I think that's a good thing." Malgin has a shot at landing a third-line spot in 2017-18 out of training camp.

Micheal Haley understands how coach Bob Boughner wants him to play this season.

Haley played the past two seasons for the Sharks, where Boughner served as an assistant. "Boughner believes in in-your-face; that doesn't necessarily mean roughness, but always hunting, always chasing the puck, taking away their time and space," said Haley. "You don't want to come in here and think it's going to be an easy two points, an easy game. You know when you step on our ice surface we're going to be coming and be giving everything we got." He racked up 128 penalty minutes and 129 hits in 58 appearances last year.

It looks as if Florida GM Dale Tallon sees Radim Vrbata on his team's second line alongside Vincent Trocheck and possibly Henrik Haapala.

Vrbata will also get plenty of power-play ice time. Trocheck and Vrbata could make a very nice combination and could thrive as they will not have to face the oppositions' top checking lines as that will be reserved for Aleksander Barkov's number one unit. Keep Vrbata in mind during the middle of your draft next season.

Newly-signed Evgeny Dadonov could end playing on the Panthers' top line alongside Aleksander Barkov and Jonathan Huberdeau.

At least that is how Florida GM envisages Dadonov's role. Of Dadonov, who had a career-high 66 points in 53 games in the KHL last season, Tallon had this to say: "He’s a totally different player now, fitness level, nutrition, maturity. High speed, work ethic, gets on pucks and makes plays. ... He plays a hard, 200-foot game, is very creative and very fast. In the last three years at the World Championships he’s been arguably the best player in the tournament playing on a very good Russian team." Looks like Dadonov should go right to the top of your sleeper list for next season.

Colton Sceviour found the back of the net in Friday's 4-1 win over the Anaheim Ducks.

Sceviour's goal tied the game at one at the 4:18 mark of the second period. The Panthers forward finished the game with a plus-2 rating and seven shots on goal in 13:46 of ice time. He has a seven goals and eight assists in 54 games.

He suffered a broken hand back in mid-September during a rookie game and he is finally ready to play again. Hawryluk was hoping to stick with the Panthers this season, but he will have to wait for an opportunity while playing for the Springfield Thunderbirds.

Owen Tippett has signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Florida Panthers.

Tippett was taken with the 10th overall pick in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft. Among his greatest assets are his speed and shot, so naturally he has a lot of offensive upside. He'll be worth keeping an eye on during training camp, although he should be regarded as a bit of a long shot to make the team. "I'm thrilled to sign Owen to his first NHL contract," said Panthers GM Dale Tallon. "Owen is a natural goal scorer with a bright future and he already possesses NHL-ready size and speed. We're looking forward to watching him compete for a spot on our NHL roster at training camp this fall."

Aaron Ekblad feels he learned a great deal from his struggles last season.

"That's a season where you really realize how hard it is, how hard this league is, how hard it is to stick around," Ekblad said. "It's easy to take that for granted with the money that we're paid and the opportunities that we get. You have to really humble yourself. Last year humbled me." He posted an NHL career-low 21 points and a career worst minus-23 rating, while skating in 68 games. The 21-year-old defender said he "may have cruised through my first two years a little bit too much. The real work began this summer." Ekblad feels more confident and healthy going into the 2017-18 campaign. He wants to lead the Panthers back to the playoffs.

Michael Matheson got his sixth goal of the season in Thursday's 6-2 loss to Montreal.

"It's a little bittersweet," Matheson said afterward. "It was nice to get a goal in my hometown, but looking back at the game it's one I'd like to forget and I'm sure my teammates feel the same way. We didn't come ready to play." He has posted 16 points in 76 outings.

Keith Yandle is optimistic and eager to get going for the 2017-18 campaign.

Yandle is looking forward to the upcoming season because the team will have healthy stars Jonathan Huberdeau and Aleksander Barkov back. He also likes that Dale Tallon is back in control of roster decisions. "Having Dale back in charge, I think that was the main thing that got everyone going," Yandle said. "You sense the power over the locker room that Dale can have. It's such a positive thing when you have a guy like Dale Tallon. Everyone respects him and everything he does for the team. Going into the season knowing he has our back, he has the team, and obviously that he hired great coaches too, it's a great thing."

Jason Demers was the odd-man out on Florida's protection list for the expansion draft.

The Panthers protected four defenders (Aaron Ekblad, Keith Yandle, Alex Petrovic and Mark Pysyk), but Demers will be available to be selected by the Vegas Golden Knights. However, the Panthers also left Jonathan Marchessault unprotected and he could be targeted because of the value he can bring in the goal-scoring department.

In other words he'll come with a $2,733,333 annual cap hit. This deal also buys his first year of UFA eligibility. He had four goals and 17 points in 82 games last season and earned praise from GM Dale Tallon for his consistency and efforts on the penalty kill.

The Florida Panthers have signed Alex Petrovic to a one-year deal worth roughly $1.8 million, according to TSN's Bob McKenzie.

Petrovic had one goal and 13 assists in 49 games with the Panthers last season. He doesn't provide much in terms of offense, but he can play a steady defensive game. Petrovic also tends to play with an edge to his game. The 25-year-old doesn't have any fantasy value going into next season.

Roberto Luongo isn't worried about being claimed by the Vegas Golden Knights during this summer's expansion draft.

Each team is allowed to protect one goalie, so there's a chance the Panthers could opt to protect James Reimer instead of Luongo, but Luongo isn't worried about being claimed by the expansion team. "I'm old as dirt," said Luongo. "They don't want me." He might have a point. Luongo just turned 38 and he's dealing with a bad hip. The fact that the veteran has five years remaining on his contract also makes him an unattractive option for an expansion team.

James Reimer capped off the season with a 38-save shutout over the President Trophy recipients on Sunday evening.

Reimer was flawless under an intense barrage from the Washington Capitals, earning his second shutout in as many nights. Two goose eggs on the final weekend boost the 29-year-old's stats to 18-16-5 this season with a 2.53 goals against average and .920 save percentage.